GROUP 3

Akhila Krishna
Athira Ravi
Mohammed Afsal
Mohammed basil
Sairsree s Nair
Kiran Dinesh
Surabhi M Nair
 Architectural conservation describes the process through
which the material, historical, and design integrity of
humanity's built heritage are prolonged through carefully
planned interventions.
 The individual engaged in this pursuit is known as an
architectural conservator-restorer. Decisions of when and
how to engage in an intervention are critical to the
ultimate conservation-restoration of cultural heritage.
 Ultimately, the decision is value based: a combination of
artistic, contextual, and informational values is normally
considered.
 In some cases, a decision to not intervene may be the most
appropriate choice.
 The first requisite in conserving any building is
a sensitive assessment of its history and merits.
 Every building has its own biography.
 The Parthenon in Athens, originally built (447
to 432 BC) as a temple, subsequently served as
a Christian church, a mosque, and a powder
magazine before it became one of the world’s
greatest attractions for the tourist and art lover.
A knowledge of the whole life of a building
brings an essential understanding of its
features and its problems.
 Next, the conservator needs a
thorough measured survey.
Generally, this is prepared by
hand, with tape and rod and
level. Modern measuring
techniques, including
photogrammetry and
stereophotogrammetry, are
also used and are quick and
remarkably accurate.

Third, the architect or surveyor analyzes the structural stability of the subject
and its living pattern of movement.

No structure is permanently still. Subsoil expands and shrinks, thrust

moves against thrust, and materials move with heat and wind. Forceful
exercises, such as English bell ringing, have an even greater effect on a
building’s stability
 Clay soil is the worst: the building protects the ground underneath but not
around; and, with every downpour, a wall on saturated clay may vary the lean
of the building.

Many ancient buildings had piled foundations—at Winchester, the cathedral

was supported on oak piles, which rotted over the centuries.

In order to underpin the structure, a diver worked for months in the

waterlogged soil.

Framed structures can move a great deal. The skeleton of a timber-framed

medieval house can be extremely crooked without losing strength if it is well
triangulated and its joints are sound.
A wall is theoretically safe until it leans far enough to
develop tension on one side, yet even then it may be
stiffened by structural cross walls.

Generally, the old, evenly spread load will be stable, and

any new point load or thrust will be suspect. The surveyors
may check the observations over a period—e.g., by
measurement with plumb lines or by simple “tell-tales”
(marking devices) set across a crack, or now by electronic
measuring devices of remarkable accuracy.
The surveyor lastly tests all services, especially electrical wiring, with
its risk of fire; gas lines, with their perils of seepage and explosion; and
plumbing, with its danger of leaks.

These services are frequently redesigned and simplified as well as

improved. Lightning conductors and fire-fighting equipment are an
important part of the protection of any ancient building.
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The conservator must analyze the good points and bad points of the
building, in the context of its current and future use, and define
remedies in terms of their relative urgency. He can then prepare a
balanced and phased conservation plan, related to the available
budget

The first remedial task is to stabilize and consolidate the structure.

Ideally, this is best done by restraining, or tying, the point of active
thrust and then by replacing, splinting, or in some way giving fresh
heart to any failing or defective member.

Adding heavy weights such as buttresses can do more harm than

good. A load can frequently be spread more widely or more evenly. A
structure can, in effect, be corseted by inserting (for example, around a
tower) a continuous beam or ring of concrete. This can be done even in
delicate masonry and, as in underpinning, by removing alternate
sections of a wall, threading in reinforcement, and casting successive
sets of concrete stitches, which unite into one strengthening beam.
Sometimes a metal rod or tie bar may be inserted along a direct line of
thrust or weakness, linking structural elements in need of support.
After structural movement, the next serious adversary in building
conservation is damp.

Not only of itself but also allied with almost every other trouble, damp
accelerates decay. Weather may be penetrating through whole surfaces,
such as porous brickwork, or finding its way through cracks or defects
in the roofing.

Especially vulnerable are gutters or any part of the rainwater-collecting

system. Wet weakens walling, rots timbers, and spoils finishes. The
remedy may involve renewing roof finishes. It may entail inserting a
continuous moisture barrier, perhaps in a modern material such as
stout polyethylene.

Techniques of waterproofing wet walls include the insertion of high-

capillary tubes, designed to draw the moisture to themselves and to
expel it, and also the injection of silicone or latex and similar water-
repellent solutions into the heart of the walling. Simple methods are
best. The traditional ditch, or dry area, drained if necessary, disposes of
the water before it reaches the wall. Double or cavity walls, with air
between them, are another defense against damp.
Again, dampness compounds decay, and the first attention should be to
protective features such as copings.

Both in stonework and in brickwork, much harm can be caused by damp,

especially when allied with an overly hard mortar jointing.

This traps moisture along the lines of the joints, bringing any harmful salts to
the surface, where they crystallize and damage the facing. Mortar jointing
should always be softer than the brick or stone of a wall.

Much decay is the result of poor construction. Defects are almost always
accelerated by the simple contravention of good building practice. In walling, a
typical cause of structural instability is a double-skin construction with rough
rubble between in which, by uneven loading, one skin has been caused to bulge
and to release loose material in the core of the wall.

Once on the move, this rapidly gains momentum as a live wedge, forcing apart
its two faces.
The conservator will insert temporary support, then remedy any uneven
loading and rebuild the affected area. In some cases, after loose material is
washed out, the unseen cavities can be grouted up, which strengthens a wall
without disturbing the facing stonework.

The roof is a building’s first defense. It must be impervious and collect water
clear of a building. Roof finishes are commonly either of unit materials such as
tiles, slates, or stone or of boarding covered in sheet metal, such as lead.

The failure of unit materials is usually caused by decay of fixings. Iron nails are
especially destructive and are best replaced by nonferrous materials, such as
copper. The battens that carry the tiles or slates have a longer lifespan but also
need periodic renewal.

Leadwork failure is usually the result of sheer age. This material has a very
long life but, if used in sheets of excessive size, has a tendency to buckle and
creep as a result of expansion—especially in sunshine.
Lead work can readily be recast or can be repaired by lead burning a new
patch to the original lead.

Soldering is less reliable and tends to crack away.

The chief enemies of timber are the natural predators of the forest— fungi
and wood-boring insects. The most voracious fungus that attacks building
timbers is dry rot (Margulies lachrymals).

This can spread along infected wood to sound timber, carrying its own
moisture supply.

It extracts cellulose, which forms the chief part of plant cells, and leaves
behind a tindery and useless shell. Stagnant air and warmth accelerate its
spread. Eradication must be thorough, or the trouble will rapidly reestablish
itself. Modern fungicides are highly effective.
Wood-boring insects include the furniture and deathwatch beetles. From eggs
laid in cracks, the larvae tunnel into timber and damage it before emerging as
beetles to lay more eggs. The deathwatch beetle inhabits mostly the outer
sapwood of oak, when wet or softened by rot. The furniture beetle lives mostly
in deal, especially when sappy or damp. Both of these species can be eradicated
with modern pesticides.

Regular maintenance is the key to building conservation; William Morris called

this practice “daily care.” A building’s life can be long, human tenancy
relatively short. Yet the cumulative effect of neglect can be desperately
damaging.

Conversely, a sensitive awareness of a building’s needs, with regular attention

to them, will extend its life and promote its long enjoyment. The successful
conservator identifies himself with a building’s life, its structure and demands,
with the special needs of an occupant, and with the skills of today’s craftsmen.
In this spirit, he can hand on to the future the best of the past.
 Most ancient buildings are constructed of stone and have
survived from antiquity as a result of the stability of this
building material. However, stone can deteriorate rapidly
without protection, particularly in our modern era of
pollution and climate change.
 Architect Susan Rebano-Edwards details a simple
technique for preserving stone in ancient building
structures. She supports treatment that is effective in
stopping deterioration and durable in its protective effort
while changing the appearance of stone as little as
possible.
 It should be simple to apply, and comparatively
inexpensive and reversible.
The process is as follows:

1) Clean the material with soft brushes to remove

ingrained dirt. Do not use dust cloths. If dirties extensive,
use a paste jelly formula such as EDTA ammonium
carbonate.

2) Wash with distilled water by brushing, spraying or by

immersion or paper pulp method on stones showing
symptoms of salting.

3) Sterilize by brushing or spraying with a minimum 25%

to 36% hydrogen peroxide stones affected by presence of
organic growths such as mosses and lichens.
4) Consolidate by brushing, spraying or injecting (or by
impregnating, filling, grouting, jointing or pin dowel adhesive)
on very dry stone using a consolidate such as Rinforzante H or
ethyl silicate for siliceous stone (granite, sandstone).

5) Consolidation is recommended when the cohesive strength of

stone has weakened and there is a need to consolidate or bind
together the disintegrated material.

6) Gap filling, replacement and/or retouching of missing parts.

In appropriate circumstances, water repellents may be applied.
Spray or brush protective films or water repellents on stone
affected by chemical integration and biological attack. Common
protectents are waxes, acrylic and silicon resins.
Although techniques of architectural conservation are improving, the
action of cleaning or repairing buildings can, with hindsight, be seen
to cause problems that at the time were unforeseen. A good example
is the unrestrained use of sandblasting to clean smog deposits from
soft-stoned buildings — a technique employed in the UK in the 1960s
and 1970s — which has damaged the external faces of stonework to
the extent that in some cases, later, the stonework has needed to be
replaced. Contemporary building codes recognize such problems,
and (it is to be hoped) mitigate poor outcomes.

Case example: Ancient stone structures

Most ancient buildings are constructed of stone and have survived
from antiquity as a result of the stability of this building material.
However, stone can deteriorate rapidly without protection,
particularly in our modern era of pollution and climate change.
 The first step in any building conservation project is a sensitive
assessment of its history and merits. As noted architect Donald
Install states, "Every building has its own biography. A
knowledge of the whole life of a building brings an essential
understanding of its features and its problems. He gives the
Parthenon in Athens as an example; built between 447 and 432
BCE to serve as a temple dedicated to the goddess Athena, its
purpose over time changed to Christian church, mosque, and
powder magazine before it became one of the most famous tourist
attractions in the world.
 Once the assessment is complete, the next step is a thorough
measured survey with a tape, rod and level. Modern measuring
techniques, such as photogrammetric (the use of aerial
photographs to make maps and surveys) and stereo
photogrammetric, are also used today to increase accuracy. Once
the measurements are complete, there is an analysis of the
structural stability of the building and its living pattern of
movement.
No building is permanently still; soil and wind can affect building
stability and need to be documented. Finally, the architect or
surveyor tests the electrical connections, plumbing, and other
utilities present in the building (this is more for historic and re-
purposed buildings).

For both ancient and historic buildings, lightning conductors and

fire-fighting equipment are checked to make sure they can provide
sufficient protection.

At the end of this assessment process, the conservator will analyze

all the collected data and decide on a conservation plan based on
available funding sources..